August 19-28: This Week in Black History

August 20: This Day in Black History

FEATURED: Roger Arliner Young 1830: The first Nat’l Negro Convention was held in Philadelphia, chaired by Richard Allen. 1856: Wilberforce University was founded. 1899: Roger Arliner Young was born. She was a scientist of zoology, biology, and marine biology. She was the first African American woman to receive a doctorate degree in zoology. She passed away in 1964 at age 65. 1931: Boxing promoter Don King was born. He turns 82 today. 1941: William Gray was born. He was a politician and member of the Democratic Party. He passed away last month at age 71. 1942: Issac Hayes was born. He was a singer, composer, actor and the first African American to win an Academy Award for music. He passed away in 2008 at age 65. 1949: Dinah Washington entered the R&B hit list with ‘Long John Blues’ peaking at #3. 1954: The Orioles began a week-long engagement at Weekes Cafe in Atlantic City. 1954: Quinn Buckner was born. He is an Olympic Gold medalist NBA player and former coach. He currently is an analyst and announcer. He turns 59 today. 1954: Al Roker was born. He is a television weather forecaster as well as an actor, book author and co-host on The Today Show. He turns 59 today. 1955: Chuck Berry’s debut ‘Maybellene’ charted on its way to #5 Pop and #1 R&B. 1965: Lawrence Parker aka KRS-One was born. He is a rapper and the 2008 recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for all his work and effort towards the Stop the Violence Movement as well as the overall pioneering of hip hop music and culture. He turns 48 today. 1974: Kenneth Moore aka Big Moe was born. He was a rapper from Houston. He died in 2007 at age 33 of a heart attack. There was speculation that recreational codeine use in the form of Purple Drank may have contributed to his death. 1977: ‘Best of My Love’ by the Emotions was the Number One Song this day. 1988: “Loosey’s Rap” by Rick James and rapper Roxanne Shante topped the R&B chart and went to #1. 1988: Karyn White, a former studio singer, stormed the R&B charts with ‘The Way You Love Me’. 1996: The Emotions, Billy Preston, the Brothers Johnson and Isaac Hayes performed at the Universal Amphitheater in Universal City, CA especially for Hayes, it was his 54th birthday. 2008: Gene Upshaw passed away at age 63. He was the longtime head of the NFL Players’ Association. 2008: Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones passed away. She was the first black woman elected to the House of Representatives from Ohio and a leader in the fight against predatory lending practices. She died after suffering a ruptured brain aneurysm. She was 58 years old. 2008: Sherman Rose passed away at age 88. He was a flight instructor for the Tuskegee Airmen. Rose was among the first blacks to receive pilot training as part of the US government’s Civilian Pilot Training Program, which led directly to the formation of the Tuskegee Airmen, an all-black unit trained at Moton Field in Tuskegee, Ala. that helped to break racial barriers while gaining fame escorting bombers in World War II. 2012: Meles Zenawi passed away. He was the Prime Minister of Ethiopia and an ally in the U.S. war on Terror. He was 57 years old.

In February, Jeff Johnson talked about Black History Month coming to a close. He said it shouldn’t be celebrated just once a year but everyday or every week. He asked that we set aside at least one evening or one day a week to talk about black history and to keep it alive. We plan to honor his request with a gallery every week this month to celebrate significant events, timelines, births and to remember those who have passed away.